Hartford teen committed to Whiting for 42 years for stabbing great uncle to death

A three-judge panel in Hartford Superior Court on Friday committed Isaiah Lindsay to the maximum security wing of Whiting Forensic Hospital for 42 years.

The 18-year-old from Hartford was found guilty Dec. 6 of the murder of his great uncle, then a moment later acquitted by reason of mental disease or defect.

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The three-judge panel — Frank M. D’Addabbo Jr., Omar A. Williams and Elliot N. Solomon — found that Lindsay did plunge an eight-inch knife into his great uncle’s chest, striking his heart and fatally wounding him, while the family sat watching television in their apartment. The judges also found that Lindsay was in the midst of a “profound psychosis” and lacked substantial capacity to appreciate the wrongfulness of his conduct or to control his conduct within the requirements of the law.

D’Addabbo recapped the evidence as presented at the trial: Lindsay had an irrational psychotic episode and believed he was being directed by others to hurt his great uncle, believed his great uncle was poisoning his family, and heard voices telling him to stab his uncle. He also had two relatives previously diagnosed with schizophrenia, and although he had been a normal and well-socialized young man in school, his parents noticed he became quiet and withdrawn when he was 16. They did not seek treatment.

Since his acquittal, Lindsay has been treated and evaluated at Whiting Forensic Hospital in Middletown, the state’s maximum security mental health facility.

Dr. Reena Kapoor, a psychiatrist at Whiting, testified Friday that Lindsay has begun to respond to treatment and understand his illness, but still has a long way to go and remains a danger to himself and the public. He takes anti-psychotic medication and underwent a battery of tests that confirmed the diagnosis of schizophrenia.

He also continues to have suspicious beliefs about his family and his great uncle. Kapoor testified that Lindsay’s illness is closely tied to the violent incident, that there is a risk of violence going forward and that Lindsay should remain in maximum security at Whiting.

Public defender William O’Connor noted that Lindsay, who was 17 at the time of the incident, has strong family support and asked the judges to confine Lindsay for no more than 25 years.

Prosecutor Chris Pelosi said that Lindsay is in the early stages of his treatment and asked that he be committed for a significant period to Whiting.

D’Addabbo said the judges agreed that Lindsay lacks adequate insight into his illness and still poses a risk to himself and others and requires treatment in maximum security. He will be under the control of the state Psychiatric Security Review Board for 42 years.

Schizophrenia is a chronic brain disorder that affects less than one percent of the U.S. population, according to the American Psychiatric Association. When the disorder is active, symptoms can include delusions, hallucinations, trouble with thinking and concentration, and lack of motivation. Most people who have schizophrenia are not violent or dangerous.

With treatment, most symptoms of schizophrenia will greatly improve. There is no cure for the disorder.